Are Creative Stereotypes Holding You Back?

Written by Michele Pariza Wacek


Here's a quick quiz:

1) When I see a see a sunrise, I'm moved to: A. Compose a poem. B. Try and capturerepparttar beauty with my paints and brush. C. Stumble drunkenly into bed -- boy that party was a lot of fun. D. Cover my face with my pillow and go back to sleep. Who in their right mind gets up early enough to look at sunrises?

2) At work, I'mrepparttar 128483 person my coworkers go to when they need someone to: A. Think up a new theme forrepparttar 128484 office party (especially if they want it to be a bit wild and offrepparttar 128485 wall). B. Get people excited forrepparttar 128486 party. C. Organizerepparttar 128487 party. D. Clean up afterrepparttar 128488 party.

3) In school, I was considered one of the: A. Brains. B. Jocks. C. Nerds. D. Nothing. I was kicked out my sophomore year.

Now take this test again and write down what you think a creative person would choose as his or her answer.

Scoring: Well, there's no real scoring here. The point is to get you thinking about creativity and stereotypes.

In another creativity article I wrote, "Quiz: Are Your Creative?", I pointed out thatrepparttar 128489 biggest difference between creative people and those who aren't is creative people believe they're creative and uncreative people believe they aren't.

But, it's one thing to say it and something completely different to live it.

I believe one ofrepparttar 128490 things that prevent people from fully realizing their creative potential isrepparttar 128491 idea of stereotypes. They think they cannot be creative because they don't look, act, live, etc., a certain way. And, unfortunately, that belief can become so powerful it truly does cripple their creativity.

Let's take a closer look at these three stereotypes.

1) When I see a sunrise…

You can still be a creative person and not be moved to paint a sunrise or write a poem about it. Everyone is different and everyone draws their creativity from different things. Me, you couldn't catch me anywhere near a sunrise without an IV drip of coffee in my arm. And even if that did happen, I'd be lucky if I could reachrepparttar 128492 creativity level of a turnip.

The point is every muse is different and every muse dances to a different drum (or maybe it's not even a drum, maybe it's a French horn.) Sunrises make you yawn? So what? Find what gets your muse dancing and go with it.

2) At work…

You don't have to act like a Bohemian to be creative. In fact, that image of a black-clad, beret-wearing, long-cigarette-smoking Artiste has beenrepparttar 128493 bane of many would-be artists. I can't tell you how many people I've run into who don't have time to BE creative because they're too busy trying to LOOK creative.

JointEffects, a Weblog

Written by Robin Reed


Moon Lovers

My Guru once said that she is inconsolable when she cannot watchrepparttar Moon rise. That stuck with me.

I, too, have fallen in love withrepparttar 128481 Moon, and now watch for it at night, and on my computer I trackrepparttar 128482 cycle of it's fullness each month. I'm becoming more aware ofrepparttar 128483 restorative power of this practice of watching. Of course, remembering to step outside at night is another matter. When I'm not too busy, too late, too something.... so I am working on being inconsolable when I cannot watchrepparttar 128484 moon-- when I remember.

Last night, I stood inrepparttar 128485 yard waiting for my dog to finish her evening routine, and even though there were giant storm clouds,repparttar 128486 moon hung clearly inrepparttar 128487 black sky. It was still, majestic, and untouched by war, tsunami, train wrecks, murders, poverty, and suffering. I found myself feeling homesick for my Mom, my brother, my best friend Blue, and wanting to return to somewhere inrepparttar 128488 world that would feel simple, and safe. It was a flash moment, a pinge in my heart, and thenrepparttar 128489 cloud moved overrepparttar 128490 Moon, and Kashi came running towardsrepparttar 128491 door.

Cont'd on page 2 ==>
 
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